July 18, 2024
By Daniel Cohen
The moment we’ve been waiting for to figure out all these playoff scenarios, the final week of the regular season has arrived! With playoff hopes, seeding, and home field advantage on the line, this week’s watchlist features seven players looking to seize momentum for their teams heading into the postseason.
Cameron Brock, Indianapolis AlleyCats
Back in 2022 at Breese Stevens Field, Cameron Brock played turnover-free and lit up the Radicals for one assist, one block, and seven goals, including the playoff-clinching goal at the buzzer to secure Indy’s two-goal win. His next game at Breese in 2023? Brock finished with three assists, three goals, and no turnovers in Indy’s one-goal win. The league’s all-time goal scoring king hits another gear when he’s playing in front of the Madison crowd, and the AlleyCats will hope he can find that gear once again tomorrow night. The playoffs are starting a week early in the Central Division, and Brock enters this play-in game coming off his third 400-yard, zero-turnover game of the season. If Indy’s veteran core shows up in Madison like we’ve seen them many times before, they’ll have a great shot at clinching their third consecutive playoff berth.
Khalif El-Salaam, Seattle Cascades
Coming off his best game of the season, Khalif El-Salaam is the type of x-factor that can single-handedly sway the game in Seattle’s favor tomorrow night. The last time we saw Leaf in action was Week 10 against Colorado, and he put together one of the more dominant individual performances this year with four assists, three goals, and three blocks in Seattle’s 20-19 win. He’s a guy that can clearly rise to the occasion when it comes to big games, both defensively and on the counterattack after turnovers, and we’ve already seen him put up numbers in Salt Lake; his 2023 Cascades debut featured four scores and two blocks, including a Callahan, in the Shred home opener. While the Salt Lake offense hasn’t looked nearly as clean as they did last year, the O-line is still converting 58.3 percent of their possessions at home (would rank top five). If Khalif and the D-line can keep them out of rhythm, Seattle could pull off the upset and steal the one seed in the West.
Anthony Gutowsky, Madison Radicals
We’ve got a bit of a back-and-forth goal scoring duel going on between Anthony Gutowsky and Dallas’ Alec Wilson Holliday, and the former will have to outscore the latter by four this weekend to secure the regular season goal scoring title. Of course, Gutowsky will be more focused on getting his team the win to secure Madison’s first playoff berth since 2018, and he should once again play a pivotal role in the Radicals game plan against Indy. He had a season-high 293 receiving yards against the AlleyCats in their Week 10 matchup to go with six goals, and he’s scored at least four goals in all but two games this year. As Madison’s top two-way player—he’s played a 65-35 split of O- and D-points this year—Gumby’s versatility has provided a massive boost to both lines whenever he’s on the field, and he’s an absolute spark plug in front of the Breese Stevens crowd. The Radicals’ home field advantage may very well be back, and it’ll be on guys like Gutowsky to keep momentum on Madison’s side throughout the night.
Brett Hulsmeyer, Atlanta Hustle
Arguably this year’s leading MVP candidate, Brett Hulsmeyer has a chance to cement himself as the clear-cut favorite with a big game against Carolina this weekend. Hulsmeyer is coming off his second 700-yard game of the season after catching the game-winning buzzer beater over Dallas last week, and few players in the league have looked as consistently dominant over the course of the season. Whether he’s dunking on defenders in the deep space or facilitating possessions with his throws, this Atlanta offense has been built around his versatility and will look to reach their peak form heading into the playoffs. Hulsmeyer did have a season-high three throwaways in his last game against Carolina (though the Hustle still won 25-19), so it’s worth watching which strategies the Flyers deploy to limit his production.
Cole Jurek, DC Breeze
Leading the DC Breeze in total scores (47), receiving yards (2,623), and blocks (9), Cole Jurek has been a massive difference-maker this year. His athleticism and field instincts make him a chore to defend downfield, and his ability to roam defensively and generate blocks has been on display all season; Jurek has played about a 65-35 split of O- and D-points this year as DC’s most versatile player. In their first meeting with New York, Jurek led the team in plus/minus with a solid 3/2/1 slashline (assists/goals/blocks) to go with nearly 400 total yards of offense on 17 points played. The 26-year-old is having a career year in his fifth pro season, and if he can lead DC towards their first Championship Weekend appearance in franchise history, he’s another name to watch on end-of-season MVP ballots.
John Randolph, New York Empire (Pictured)
Active for the first time in a month, John Randolph is back after missing the last two games for New York. This Empire squad has rolled through Salt Lake and Minnesota without Randolph, and now adding back a top-three player, it feels like this could once again be New York’s season to lose. While he’s been primarily used on D-line throughout his career, Randolph played as an O-line starter in his last two games, including Week 7 against DC when he totaled three assists, three goals, and nearly 500 yards of offense without a turnover. For the first time in a long time, the Empire seem to be at full strength this week, so it’ll be interesting to follow Randolph’s usage and whether he slots back in on defense or helps run the show on offense.
Will Selfridge, Salt Lake Shred
Back from a knee injury that’s kept him sidelined for the last two months, Will Selfridge has been cleared to return to action this week against Seattle. Simply put, Selfridge has been a game-changer whenever he’s been active for Salt Lake. Of all players in Shred history that have been on the field for at least 200 possessions, Selfridge ranks first in individual offensive efficiency; the team has scored on 61.4 percent of possessions when he’s been on the field throughout his career. His downfield explosiveness should give an immediate lift to a Shred offense that has struggled with consistency over the past few weeks, but he’ll have his work cut out for him against a Cascades team that has allowed opposing O-lines to convert just 42.9 percent of possessions this year, the second lowest rate in the league.
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